A day in the life of...

Maria Dweggah, WHO

Case study #1 – You’ve been G-tagged

Afixed term G5 secretaro-administrativo-personalo-technico-programme assistant/nuclear physicist sits in her office and wonders why almost overnight, half of the staff in her department are P2 or P3 (a good many of them fresh out of school with no relevant work experience). Most are technical or administrative officers or specialists of some kind or another who suddenly obtain this noble title by merely signing a contract.

She reads a department e-mail where a senior staff member is extolling the virtues of a person whose CV he has just received and is asking if anyone would be interested? And her level of morale drops another notch. Is anybody looking? Does anybody care?

She has relative experience, a degree, institutional knowledge, skills, competence. They have the degree, the great CV (?) the connections; but, unlike her … they are G-Tag free.

This is not a unique incident. It is repeated over and over throughout the House. It makes a mockery of staff development, promotional opportunity and effective use of years of skill and knowledge. Is anyone out there listening? Or does promotion, staff development only apply to the newcomers.

Case study #2 – 45 wpm

A temporary secretary hired at G3, fails her typing test. She sits at her desk, tears of humiliation, frustration and anger streaming down her face. Seeing her brought me back to 1992, memories of my fingers calcifying at the sound of the words “are you ready?”

She, as many before her, was told that unless she passed her typing test, her next contract would be at G3 level. Forget that she has an impressive CV, that she is bilingual, trilingual, multilingual. Forget that she has a good command of the software. Forget that she has a long history of employment. Forget that she has been doing the job well and that all around are satisfied with her work. Forget that she has good people skills, that she completes her work on time, that she has good administrative skills. Forget that she is dependable, a quick learner. Forget that she is actually performing the functions of a higher graded post. Forget that she immediately took over her duties without any training. Forget as well that she is an adult, perhaps a mother with a family, even a grandmother. Forget that she has a family to raise.

She failed her typing test

In the midst of a human resources management reform where developing competencies has become a priority, there are still those in our organizations who judge women by the speed of their fingers. It’s pathetic, unnecessary and reflective of a stone age mentality. While it is acknowledged that typing tests for secretaries had their place in the past when they spent up to 90% of their time in front of a typewriter, the invasion of IT in the workplace has transformed the role of the secretary to such an extent that the typing test has become obsolete. Other than for posts where speed is a specific requirement and essential, these instruments of torture should go the way of the dinosaurs. Familiarity and effective use of software has in many instances become more important than speed. Serious thought should be given to the full range of skills needed for a particular post and their relative importance. There are undoubtedly some of you who believe otherwise; you went through it, so should all. But the times, they are a changin